Fuel-producer.



I W. L. SHEPARD & H. J. WIGKHAM.

' FUEL PRODUCER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3, 1909. 940,945. Patented Nov. 23, 1909.

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APPLICATION FILED MAY 3, 1909.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILBUR L. SHEPARD, OF ELMWOOD, AND HORACE J. WICKHAM, OF MANCHESTER,

CONNECTICUT.

FUEL-PRODUCER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 23, 1909.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILBUR L. SHEPARD and HORACE J. VVIoKHAn, citizens of the United States, residing at Elmwood and Manchester, respectively, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in F uel-Producers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to apparatus by means of which peat can be quickly and continuously transferred from the condition it is in as it comes from the bog, and carries considerable moisture, to a condition which renders it a desirable and cheap fuel, which apparatus will, if desired, at once convey into the furnace such quantity of the peat that is so treated as is necessary to burn in order to keep up the fire.

The object of the invention is to provide an apparatus which is comparatively simple to construct and to operate, which is continuous in operation and is very economical in that the waste heat, or rather, the heat which results from the combustion of the fuel in the furnace and that is not absorbed in raising the temperature of water in the boiler, or for doing other work, and which heat ordinarily escapes through the stack and becomes lost, is utilized to dry the peat and put it in proper condition for use as fuel in the furnace.

Several forms of apparatus are shown in the accompanying drawings as illustrating various constructions which may be used, and different methods which may be followed, in carrying out this invention.

. Figure 1 of the drawings shows a side elevation, with parts in section, of a furnace and horizontal boiler, and an apparatus which embodies this invention, that is arranged to prepare peat, and to feed as much as is necessary, when in proper condition, to the fire box of the furnace. In this view the peat drying and feeding apparatus is arranged in such manner that the fire supporting draft flows in the direction of the travel of the peat. Fig. 2 shows a similar view with the peat feeding apparatus arranged to carry the peat oppositely to the draft. Fig. 3 shows a view of a furnace, boiler and apparatus for drying and feeding peat, in which the draft is arranged to flow in parts in the same direction as, and in parts in the opposite direction to, the travel of the peat.

Fig. 4 shows a transverse section on the plane indicated by the dotted line 4-4 on F ig: 5 of an apparatus embodying the invention, which has peat feeding means of difierent form from that shown in the other views. Fig. 5 shows a side elevation with a tube 6. In this tube is a spiral conveyer 7.

Arranged parallel beneath this tube are a number of similar tubes, in each of which is a like conveyer. The shafts 9 of these conveyers are connected by a train of gears 10, the lower of which is provided with a driving pulley 11. These gears rotate the conveyers alternately in opposite directions. At the delivery end of each conveyer, except the lowest, is an opening 12, from the upper to the next lower tube. Through these openings the draft of hot gases flows, and the peat that is carried along by the conveyer, drops to the next lower tube. The lowest tube is connected by a spout 13 with the fire box. A pipe 14: may be arranged to connect the lowest tube with the stack. This pipe may be provided with a damper 15, for controlling the draft through it. A pipe 16, having a damper 17, may connect the lowest tube with the pipe leading from the smoke box to the highest tube. At the inlet end of the top tubeis a hopper 18 into which the peat to be fed through the apparatus is deposited. At the lower end of this hopper may be a disintegrating or feed roll 19. The shaft 20 of this roll is provided with a pulley 21, that is belted to a pulley 22 on the shaft 23. This shaft may have a pulley 2 1 that is belted to the pulley 25 on the shaft of the engine 26, which may be run draft from the fire box through the boiler fiues and upright pipe from the smoke box. The hot gases that are drawn by the fan in this manner, are driven back and forth through the several tubes, and such volume as is desired, is allowed to flow through the pipe 16 back to the upright pipe 5, and such as is not desired, is allowed to pass ,ofi through the outlet pipe let to the stack. \Vhile the fan is creating this draft and blowing the hot gases back and forth through the tubes, peat which has been merely sun-dried, or which has, by any other means, had a part of the free water drained or expelled therefrom, is deposited in the hopper and from thence is carried by the spiral conveyers back and forth through the tubes with the draft. In this manner the peat becomes disintegrated and thoroughly dried and so much of it as required, together with the gases evolved, is passed into the fire box and used as fuel for supporting the fire. Such of the dried peat as is not desired for immediate use in the furnace, is allowed to pass out of the bottom tube through the spout 32.

The second apparatus illustrated, is practically the same as that above described, except that it is so arranged that the draft is caused to flow in a direction opposite to that in which the peat is conveyed through the tubes. In this case, the smoke box 33 is connected by a pipe 34 with the lowest tube 35. The same end of this tube is connected by the spout 36 with the fire box. In this case the fan 37 is arranged as before, near the hopper end of the top tube, but is driven in the reverse direction so as to draw the hot gases from the fire box through the tubes, and pass them up and out through the pipe 38 to the stack. With this form of apparatus, the peat is subjected to the highest heat at the end of its travel through the tubes and just as it passes to the furnace. The moist peat entering the tubes at the hopper, is subjected to the lowest heat, that is, is subjected to the gases of combustion as they are about to pass to the stack. By this arrangement the moisture taken up by the hot gases is carried off and the peat very thoroughly dried and put into suitable condition to be passed directly into the furnace for fuel.

In the form of apparatus shown in Fig. 3, the conveyer tubes 39 are connected at one end with a header pipe 40, and at the other end with a header pipe 4:1. In each of these tubes is a spiral conveyer 42. These conveyers are driven alternately in opposite directions by a gear train 43, as in the apparatus previously described. A pipe 44 leads from the smoke box 4-5 to the header 40, andin this pipe is a draft producing fan 46. A pipe 47 leads from the header 41 to the stack. Openings 48 are made from the header 4:0 to the upper sections of the conveyer tubes, and openings 49 are made from the upper sections of the conveyer tubes to the header L1. The conveyer tubes have openings 50 through their bottoms, at the delivery ends, to provide communication from one to the next, and the top tube is provided with a hopper 51. IVhen this form of the apparatus is in operation, peat is fed from the hopper to the top tube and carried by the conveyers back and forth through the tubes, dropping from one to the other through the openings 50, and through the spout 52 is delivered to the fire box 53. Vhile the peat is being carried back and forth through the tubes in this apparatus by the conveyers, the fan which forces the draft for the firein the furnace, blows the hot gases into the header 40 and through the tubes, to the header 41. The hot gases which flow in this way, travel through the op conveyer tube, and every alternate conveyer tube in the same direction that the peat is being carried by the conveyers, and in the other tubes the hot gases flow in a direction opposite to that in which the peat is being carried by the conveyers. This action thoroughly dries the peat and carries off the moisture therefrom, leaving the peat in good condition to be passed into the fire box and used as fuel.

Instead of the spiral conveyers previously described, chain or bucket conveyers may be employed, as illustrated in Figs. 4: and 5. In this case, the conveyer chains 72 with buckets or wings 73 may be arranged in the tubes to travel over sprocket wheels 74, mounted on shafts 7 5, which are driven by intermeshing gears 76. One of the gear shafts may be provided with a pulley 77, which may be belted to any convenient source of power.

IVith apparatus which embodies this invention, peat containing more or less moisture may be taken from a bog and deposited in the hoppers and fed to the furnaces, with out handling. The treatment to which the peat is subjected in passing through the conveyer tube or tubes, renders it into suitable condition for use as fuel.

The use of this apparatus is economical, for the reason that it is only waste heat that is utilized for preparing the fuel. The fan produces a forced draft, which insures a satisfactory free burning of thepeat and a hot fire, and it also drives the heated gases of combustion in such manner that they thoroughly dry the peat and carry off such moisture as they pick up therefrom.

The invention claimed is:

1. In combination with a furnace, communicating tubes, conveyers in said tubes, means for driving the conveyers, a connection between the smoke box of said furnace and the tubes, a connection between the fire box of said furnace and the tubes, a blower for producing a draft from the fire box through the tubes, means for admitting peat to the tubes, and means for discharging peat from the tubes into the fire box.

2. In combination with a furnace, parallel tubes with communications from one to the other at opposite ends, conveyers in said tubes, means for driving the conveyers, a' connection between the smoke box of said furnace and the tubes, a connection between the fire box of said furnace and the tubes, a blower for producing a draft from the fire box through the tubes, means for admitting peat to the tubes, and means for discharging peat from the tubes into the fire box.

3. In combination with a furnace, parallel tubes that communicate with each other at opposite ends, conveyers in said tubes, means for driving the conveyers alternately in opposite directions, a connection between the smoke box of said furnace and the tubes, a connection between the fire box of said furnace and the tubes, a blower located in one tube, means for driving the blower and producing a draft from the fire box through the tubes, means for admitting peat to the tubes, and means for discharging peat from the tubes into the fire box.

4. In combination with a furnace, parallel tubes communicating with each other at opposite ends, conveyers in said tubes, means for driving the conveyers, a connection between the smoke box of said furnace and the tubes, a connection between the fire box of said furnace and the tubes, a blower ar ranged in the connection between the smoke box and the inlet to the tubes, means for rotating the blower, and means for admitting peat to the tubes and discharging it therefrom.

5. In combination with a furnace, parallel tubes communicating with each other at opposite ends, spiral conveyers in said tubes, gearing for driving the spiral conveyers, a connection between the smoke box of said furnace and the tubes, a connection between the fire box of said furnace and the tubes, a blower for producing a draft from the fire box through the tubes, and means for admitting peat to the tubes and discharging it therefrom.

WILBUR L. SHEPARD. HORACE J. WICKHAM.

Witnesses:

HARRY R. WVILLIAMs, JOSEPHINE M. STREMPFER. 

